Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1887-01-27
THE CATTLE BUSINESS.
FRANK WILkESON TELLS OF THE
TERRIBLE SCENES OF WINTER.
A Fearful Storm on the Plains and the
Resulting Destruction of Animal Life.
humanity,

a Fearful Storm on the Plains and the
Resulting Destruction of Animal Life.
Herds Drifting with Storm-,Ian's In
humanity.
saw the upper North Platte valley again
In winter. By Jan l the lofty mountains
which bound the valley were covered with
snow. Such portions of them as were above
the timber lines We're dazzling white. Three
or four feet of SHOW lay on the pine clad
mountain TANKS. The elk and deer had left
the highlands and roamed over the foothills
and in the river valley. The small amount
Of snow that had fallen in the valley during
November and December had been blown
into the sage brush, or had mysteriously dis
appeared, licked up by the dry, cold air dur
ing the warmer portions of the day One day,
early in January, dark clouds swirled around
the snow clad mountain peaks They rose
and fell now the white peaks appeared above
the vapor, now sank, apparently, out of sight.
Great masses of cloud would be suddenly
torn from the main mass of circling vapor
and dashed into the foothills by gusts of wind.
Northward low. black line of clouds began
to slowly rise above the horizon The air
grew colder and colder.
The uneasy cattle lowed and moved out of
the valley to the foothills Bands of antelope
galloped at full speed across the compare
lively level valley and disappeared. a band
of elk trotted rapidly from the river to the
foothills of the Sierra Madre range. The
south wind ceased TO blow There was
brief calm and profound silence Then, with
a mighty roar the keen, arctic like wind
rushed out of the north. The clouds that
Were swirling around the mountain tops
formed into line at the command of nature
and charged furiously down the deeply fur
rowed flanks of the range. Long tongues of
snow laden vapOr preceded the advance Of
the cloud line as skirmishers line of battle
In the north the dark line of clouds shot up
ward, as if thrown from a crevice like NOR
tar. Ice, sand, snow and gravel flew almost
horizontally through the air.
The mercury sank far below zero. The
wind fairly howled as it poured through the
funnel like valley The utmost extent Of
vision was about thirty yards: beyond that
q rushing dirt colored wall of SHOW and sand
No man dared to venture forth from the
ranch house. The cattle did not go for water,
nor did they Craze during the three days this
storm ragged, but stood huddled together in
the lee of rocks and bluffs and willow thick
cts. The weak cattle disappeared before this
arctic blizzard as Jumps of ice before fur
mace. Strong steers passed through it with
bat little apparent discomfort, and no loss.
| know of no better place to freeze weak cows
and stock cattle to death than the upper
North Platte valley.
4 severe storm on the plains, where there
is no shelter for cattle, is exceedingly destruc-
tive to animal life, and is especially hard on
cows and ON through cattle'-that is, cattle
that have just been driven on to the range,
from Texas generally. The severe storms on
the plains are always from the north The
air is thick with snow and ice. The exceed
ingly cold wind blows tiercely. The mercury
ranges from zero to 80 degrees below zero
The cattle, unable to stand against the wind,
drift with the storm At first with active
steps and many bellows, they walk bravely
down the storm. But long before the
strength of the blizzard is expended they be-
come wear and discouraged Their loud
bellows are supplanted by means. They be
come suilcn and apparently Indifferent to
their fate. They travel until they fall or un-
til they find shelter, or until the storm has
passed
After drifting down the wind for hours
yes. for days-after crossing dosolate divides,
after staggering over the tracaless plains for
many miles. staggering singly or in pairs or
in families on a journey the horrors Of which
cannot be described, these wretched animals
NAV come on a barbed wire fence. unlav7-
fully erected by greedy cattle owners To keep
other mems cattle from water The mscr-
able starving animals halt at the Llrbed
wire fence, and there many of them die. The
intensely cold wind Sits through their bodies
so quickly that they stand motioulcs~, head
down 10 the wind, and die rather than turn
their side 10 the death dealing blast. Once
during a frghtful storm which sweTt over
western Nebraska, heard the faint moaning
of cattle in distress; the sad soun vibrated
mournfulv through the steady rhytMnical
beat of the storm. | opened the door Of the
dugout in which | had sought shelter and
saw Il large herd Of cattle walking down the
storm. Their heads hung low; the snow and
ice particles were packed solidly into their
hair: their n0strils were ice coated. For
foot above the earth the air was packed with
drifting Snow, which hid the lower portion
of the cattle'S legs from my vision They
looked Ike the white specterS OF cattle float
ing with SNOW laden arctic wind To a frozen
hell.
Unlike stampede Of cattle in the sum
mcr, when the herd can be turned and made
ito mill, or can be gathered at the bank Of
some river, nothing can be done to intercept
the flight of cattle during q blizzard on the
plains. The extent of vision is but fe.
wards. The cold is intense To leave the
huts, dignified by the names OF ranch houses,
is exceedingly dangerous. Snow alters the
appearance of the plains so greatly that no
man who is caught out in blizzard can tell
where he is. To get lost on the plains during
a blizzard i a most serious misfortune. and
one that has cost hundreds Of strong men
their lives The cattle have, of necessity, to
be allowed TO drift whittier they list / have
seen cattle branded with Wyoming irons
grazing iii southern Indian territory They
bad drifted that great distance in one winters
storms.
The maternal instinct is strong i'll the half
wild cows Of To;as. They love their calves
They defend them from the attack Of car
niyorous animals as long as they have life
They feed and protect them until they are
pushed from their sides by younger calves.
No cow can raise q calf on the southern graz
ng ground and at the same time IL gestant
without being in serious peril There Is a
iOuble drain on their systems. which the COWS
:annot withstand unless well fed and properly
JARED for The care they receive on the
-ange is to be turned adrift to take care Of
themselves During the winter they wander
over the snow-clad, wind-swept plains, nurs-
ng the calves which bleat at their sides;
iaily they grow poorer after the first severe /
forms Seen to-day, and again III two (
weeks, they are hardly recognizable They .
ook as If they had been planed down with a
unHngly devised jaekplane, that gouged the /
lesh from beneath their skins That plane is /
he aorth wind and the ice particles which fly
almost horizontally through the air.
Ire cattle that graze on the AID. wini- !.